Atlanta Braves general manager Frank Wren fired

The Atlanta Braves, frustrated and angry with their dysfunctional team, fired Frank Wren as their general manager Monday morning and hired John Hart to be their interim GM.

It is the first firing of a Braves GM or manager since 1990.

Braves CEO Terry McGuirk had grown increasingly frustrated with the team, and in August, a high-ranking Braves' official told USA TODAY Sports that Wren, and possibly even manager Fredi Gonzalez, would be fired if the Braves failed to reach the playoffs.

The Braves were eliminated Sunday, and McGuirk didn't wait 24 hours before making the move on Wren.

McGuirk appointed Braves president John Schuerholz, Braves Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox and Hart to a three-man committee to search for a new GM, but the top internal candidate is highly regarded assistant general manager John Coppolella.

That new GM may have little choice but keep Gonzalez on. When asked at a Monday news conference if he'd give Gonzalez a vote of confidence to the incoming GM, Cox said, "Yes. Absolutely."

"It is our goal to find that Braves Way again and invigorate it," Schuerholz said Monday, when the team announced it also fired assistant GM Bruce Manno.

"It was a cumulative effect over time."

Locked into a local television contract that's not as lucrative as the multi-billion dollar deals signed by other clubs, the Braves have stayed almost completely out of the megabucks bidding for top free agents.

Wren's tenure saw several mid-level deals backfire badly.

In November 2010, Wren traded for second baseman Dan Uggla, then signed him to a five-year, $62 million contract one year before he was eligible for free agency.

Uggla batted .209 in four seasons with the Braves, who released him in July. They still owe him $13 million in 2015.

While Wren was lauded for the trade that brought Justin Upton and Chris Johnson from the Arizona Diamondbacks, his five-year, $75 million signing of B.J. Upton, Justin's brother, has not panned out. In two seasons with the Braves, Upton is batting .197 with 319 strikeouts and just 20 home runs in 898 at-bats. He is due $46.3 million in salary from 2015-2017.

Hart, 66, who spent 13 years with the Cleveland Indians as a GM and four years with the Texas Rangers, has been an analyst for the MLB Network since 2009.

He will not seek the permanent GM job, but could oversee the baseball operations department.

"No, I will not seek the job," Hart said Monday. "It's been discussed, but at this stage we are going to talk to a lot of people. It has not been ruled out, but it's not something I'm knocking down the door to do."

There were no announcements made on Gonzalez or his staff, but those likely will take place after the season ends. Gonzalez, who is well-thought of by Cox and Schuerholz, likely will stay aboard while coaches are dismissed.

The Braves' offense has been abysmal this year, scoring two or fewer runs in 60 of 155 games. They've gotten worse in September, losing 11 of their last 13 games, batting just .207 with six homers. They produced five or fewer hits in eight of 18 games this month.

"As a pitcher, we have our confidence up, but at the same time you have to, like, throw a complete-game shutout or something like that to get a win,'' Braves starter Ervin Santana said Sunday. "I mean, it's tough. Very tough."